払
Pay
| on’yomi | kun’yomi | Radicals |
|---|---|---|
| n/i | はら.い |  + ム |
Meaning: Pay
Someone is holding a nailbat, standing over a pile of money. He made you pay up what you owed to his boss.
Imagine the story of what happened here. Did he threaten you with the nailbat? Did he use it on you? Whatever happened, it worked… you made a pile of your money and gave it to the guy with the nailbat. Probably wasn’t a good idea to borrow from the yakuza.
Reading: n/i
There’s no important on’yomi reading for this kanji, so you can move right along to the vocab / kun’yomi.
Vocabulary
Try to learn the meanings of the first three words. If you’re a really hoopy frood, try to learn the pronunciation of the 払い parts as well. They’re all the same, after all!
a 払う（はらう）＝ To Pay
- Meaning: The same as the kanji, in verb form though.
- Reading: You have to remember the はら part to know the kun’yomi for this kanji. Think of the Egyptian God Ra wanting you to pay him. You just say “Ha Ra (はら), I ain’t payin’ you, bro!”
a 支払い（しはらい）＝ Payment
- Combo: 支 (support) + 払 (pay)
- Meaning: When you pay, you support, and you’ve made your payment
- Reading: The reading is a bit strange. First kanji is on’yomi, second kun’yomi.
a 未払い（みはらい）＝ Unpaid, Overdue
- Combo: 未 (Not Yet) + 払い (pay)
- Meaning: If you haven’t paid yet, it’s been unpaid / overdue
- Reading: The on’yomi and kun’yomi combined again. What’s up with this kanji? Obviously making you pay some kind of kanji debt.